The Eyes of Tammy Faye (documentary): I always thought that Tammy Faye was some sort of hard-line religious nut until I saw her on The Surreal Life a few years back. On that show, you really got the feeling that Tammy Faye was actually a really sweet person. Although I suspect this documentary is a little documentary and a little PR, Tammy Faye comes through as a really sweet, genuine person. It’s definitely worth a watch. B

Inside Deep Throat (documentary): Everyone has heard of the movie Deep Throat, America’s first mainstream porno, but few of us who are under 50 really had any idea what a big deal it was. I had no idea that you could see it in a regular movie theater in your neighborhood. I can’t even imagine the local AMG theater even contemplating showing some porn in this day and age, but it was done in 1972. And there were arrests and court cases and a whole big hubub. My favorite part was when they interviewed this sweet, little, old lady outside a theater that was showing the original film. With a smile she said something like, “I know it’s a dirty picture, and I’ve got my ticket right here. If I want to see a dirty picture then it’s my right to do so. No one is going to tell me I can’t.” You have to love that kind of spunk. B

Mr & Mrs Smith (action) Two spies marry each other to provide themselves a nice, domestic cover for their spying activities. Unfortunately, neither know that the other is spy. This one was pretty cool. There is lots of action, spies, shooting, explosions, and marital disharmony. Thumbs up. B+

Mr. 3000 Bernie Mac is an a-hole baseball player that retires after he gets 3000 hits. Unfortunately, when the numbers are crunched to put him in the hall of fame a few years later, they find that he was actually a few hits short. Bernie then goes back to the majors to get the final hits, and instead finds out that there is no “I” in team. Heartwarming? No, this was fucking dumb. C+

Trekkies (documentary): I thought it would be funny to rent a documentary about about “Trekkies” or “Trekkers” or whatever the fuck people call nerds these days. Unfortunately, it was less funny “ha ha” and more funny “scary” I liked Star Trek and all, but these people make me nervous. If you think you are a nerd for liking Star Trek, this movie will prove to you that you are cooler than you ever thought possible. That is, unless, you make everyone at work call you “Commander.”. No, I’m not kidding. B+

Happy Endings (drama): Ok. This sounds weird, but it’s good. A girl and her step brother have sex. The the girl leaves and the brother doesn’t see her for 20 years. 20 years later, a guy shows up to blackmail the sister into helping him make a documentary about the sex industry to help him get into film school. In return, he’ll tell her and the brother where their child is. It’s a weird twist of stories that ends up being a character study on imperfect people. This is the first time that I’ve seen Lisa Kudrow and Tom Arnold in roles where my lack of laughter was an indicator of really good performances. A-

The Chumscrubber: The first 3/4 of the movie was so surreal that I was sure that I was being led down a confusing path only to have everything tie itself up with a grand twist. Instead, I was left hanging and not too happy with the whole thing. It was 3/4 of Donnie Darko, and 1/4 crappy after school special. D+

Lord of War (drama): Nick Cage picks himself up from his crappy job at his parents’ restaurant by slowly becoming the world’s largest arms dealer. I can’t say that I was unhappy during the movie, but it seemed like it was a long way to go for a moral. B-

Transporter 2 (action): The transporter is one of those illicit action heroes who knows kung fu, has a cool car, and lives his life by his own personal code. This is usually a winning combination, but this is the second time that in the Transporter series that they’ve failed to hit the mark. In the first one, they slowed down all the action with romance, and in this one, they just made the action so ridiculous that it crushed any possible hope of immersing oneself in the movie. At one point, a bomb was strapped to the bottom of the Transporter’s car. He notices it. He gets in the car, drives over a jump that flips the car upside down where a crane hook knocks the bomb off just before it explodes. If that wasn’t stupid enough, the car lands right side up and he keeps on going. Stupid? Yup. Worth a watch? Sure. The action is good when not stupid, and the female lead villain is comic book insane enough to make me forget how weird it was that her preferred fighting outfit was spike heels and underwear. C

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